Folding lawn cart



1965 s. c. EARLEY 3,166,339

FOLDING LAWN CART Filed Nov. 17, 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. SAMUELC. EARLEY Uww "kw ATTORNEYS Jan. 19, 1965 s. c. EARLEY 3,166,339

FOLDING LAWN CART Filed Nov. 17, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. SAMUELC. EARLEY aw-m ATTORNEYS Jan. 19, 1965 s. c. EARLEY FOLDING LAWN CART 3Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Nov. 17, 1961 INVENTOR. SAMUEL C. EARLEY BY @amfa-44 ATTORNEYS 17 -ZZZ.

United States Patent 3,166,339 FOLDING LAWN CART Samuel C. Earley,Toledo, Ohio, assignor to Sam C. Earley Corporation, Toledo, ()hio, acorporation of Ohio Filed Nov. 17, 1961, Ser. No. 153,162 5 Claims. (Cl.280-36) The present invention relates to a wheeled cart which may bepartially or fully folded, and to a lawn cart which has not onlystructural parts that may be collapsed containers that were too large tofit in the cart body. Many of these carts used removable parts whichbecame lost when the cart was folded forstorage,fand certain of thecarts were poorly balanced in that excessive. effort was required towheel them when they were loaded. Still another-problem arising from theuse of existing lawn carts is the fact that residue of thetransportedmaterial remains after the cart has been dumped and folded.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide afolding lawn cart whichis sturdi-ly constructe yet economicallymanufactured.

Another object of the invention p to-provide a lawn cart which maybepartially "folded for transporting material in. containers and fullycollapsed for storage in a limited space.

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wardly directed sides extending along opposite longitudinal edges of thebottom to the front. The sides are hingedly mounted for movement from anerected position for carrying loose material to a folded positionadjacent the bottom for carrying packaged material. The front islikewise hingedly mounted for selective swinging movement to a closedposition adjacent the folded sides and bottom for storage. A pair oflongitudinally ex tending handles having ground engaging legs and wheelsare pivotally connected to the bottom for moving the wheels from planesthat are normal to the bottom for forward movement to planes that areparallel to. the bottom for sideways travel.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to FIGS.- 1 to5,-there is shown a folding lawn cart 20 constructed in accordance withthe invention. The cart 20 comprises a rectangular bottom 22 of a rigidmaterial such as metal and a generally rectangular front 24 of asimilarrrigid material that is approximately the same size as the bottom22. The :front 24 is positioned along the lowermost edge of the bottom22, and generally triangular shaped sides 26 and 27 of'a rigid materialextend between the bottom 22 and the front 24 along opposed edgesthereof. 1

The cart 20-further includes a pair. of longitudinally extending handles28 and 29 having .ground engaging wheels 30'and 31 respectively mountedonthe forwardmost ends thereof. -Downwardly extending legs 32 and 33 areformed'on the handles 28 and 29 respectively to support the cart 29 inthe position shown in FIG. 1 for transporting *loose' material such asdirt and fertilizer.

. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wheels 30 and 31 are Stillanotheriobject of the invention is to provide a rotated to enable thecart to be moved sideways.

. A still furtherobject of the invention is'to provide a foldingrlawncart having provisions for the escape of materialresidue therefrom whenfully folded.

Othernobjects of the invention will be apparent from't-he specificationwhich follows and from= the drawings in which like numbers are usedthroughout to'identlify like parts. 7 i 3 Q the drawings; 1G. 1 is asideelevation of Qstructed in accordance with the invention; Q FIG. 2 isa plan view of the lawn cart;

I .FIG; 3 is.a perspectiveview of the lawn in its open or-erectedposition with the wheel axles turned ninety degrees-for sideways travel;

. 4 is a perspective view of the lawn cart with the Wheels intheirl'norm'al position and the sides folded fof transporting materialin containers;

FIG. 5. is aperspective view showinggthe lawn capt in its completelycollapsed position forfst orag'e; FIG. 6 is a F182; a

FIG. 7 is an enlarged partial view taken from the'position indicated bythe line 77 in FlG. 2;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged partial sectionalyiew taken along the line 8 8 inFIG. 5;

In: order to'achi'eve the above objects, a cart is providedwhichincludes".-aw;bottom::having an :upwardly directed front along thelowermost edge thereof .togethedwith up a folding lawn cart convsectional view taken along .the line 6 -6 of wheeled lawn cart havingaxles which maybe selectively positioned in the central portion of thecart 20for balancing the weight of the loose material when the cart isfilled.

v :The bottom 22 has a pair of upwardly directed flanges [341,and 35'extending alongopposite longitudinal edges one another and are generallynormal to the plane .of

thelbottom 22 to impart; additional rigidity thereto. The

rigidity of the bottorn22, isfurther increased by a lip 36- that isangularly disposed to the plane; of the bottom 22 .as shown; in FIGS. 6and 8.; The lip 36' extends trans versely across the lowermost edge ofthe bottom 22 between the flanges 34 and35, andhas arolled portion 37alongthe outermost edge for further strength. Thebottom 22 isfurtherstrengthened by a stiffener wall3S-that.

.i's securedltothe uppermost edge of. the bottom 22 op.-

posite the lip 36 together with a triangular brace 39, in the centralportion of the lower-surface of the bottom 22.

Thetransversely extending stiffener 'wall'38 is directed downwardlyfromthe uppermost edge, of the flanges 34 and beyond the lower surfaceofthe :bottonr 22,,and the uppermost edge ofth e brace 39 ispreferablyadjacent surfaces of the flanges-34 and 35 outwardly, of thehandles 2-8 and 29 respectively yas shown FIG. 4 while the LQQPPQSitesides of the brace 3Qslope inward and downward from the handles 23 and29 toward. a: centrally located fold line that is parallel to thesehandles. i

The front 24 has a pair of mating flanges 42 and 43 extending alongopposed longitpdinaledges thereof as .shown in PIGS. 3 and The flanges42 and 43 are parallel and extend at right angles to" the plane of thefront 24 to impartrigidity thereto.

The lowermost end portions the front flanges 42 and 43 are pivotallyatta'ched to :IOWBIIHDSfieHd portions ofthe bottdrn flanges 34 and 35respectively by anyconvenient hinging means 44 such as pinsextendingfrom the s bottoinl flanges 34am throughthe mating front anges I .1 42and 43, A pair offsuitable' stops 46fwhich will be r likewise haverolled with; the handle. whim lo g for storage. The spacing between theflanges-d2 and 43 is slightly greater than the corresponding spacingbetween the bottom flanges 34 and 35 so that when the front 24 is in theclosed position shown in FIG. 5 the front'flanges 42 and 43 overlie thebottom'fianges 34 and 35 in substantial juxtaposition.

Additional rigidity is imparted to the front 24 by a transverselyextending mating lip 48 along the lowermost edge thereof adjacent thebottom lip 36 asshown in FIGS. 6 and 8; The lip 48 is additionallystrengthened by a rolled portion 49, and in addition to strengtheningthe front 24, the lip 43, which is angularly disposed to 'th planeof thefront 24, engages the bottom lip 36' when the front 24 is in the openposition to prevent escape of loose material. When the front 24 is movedto the closed posithe bottom lip 36 as shown in FIG. 8 to provideia slot5d that enables any residue of the loose material to drop from thefolded cart. Hinges 52v are utilized the mount the sides ZtSand 27 onthe bottom flanges 34 and'35 for swinging movement In the erectedposition the each other between the bottom flanges 34 'and SS in planes.generallyparallel to the bottom 22 as shown in FIG. 8. The'upperedges'of the sides 26 and'27 have rolled; portions 54- and 55respectively While the edges tion shown in FIG. 5, the front lip movesaway from V to mount theaxle 68 or 69 and to limit rotation of thehandle 28 or 29 by engaging an outer wall 77 of the adjacent stop 4-6 asshown in FIG. 10. Thus the proper positioning of the wheels 30 and 31for forward movement of the cart 2th is assured.

An important feature of the invention is the provision of additionalsupport at the center of the cart for greater load carrying capacity.More, particularly the upper edge surface of each of the flanges 72 and73 is cammed as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, and this edge surface of therearmost flange engages" a center plate 78 of the stop 49% when thewheels 36 and 31 are rotated to 'the position shown in FIG. 10. Thecenter plate '78 is quite rugged and carries a front engaginglip '79 atthe forward end together with a spacing tab St? at the rear end.

The handles '23 and 2% are maintained in their normal position shown inFIG. 1 for ground engagement of the wheels and 31 and the legs 32 and 33by suitable lock- .ing clips 82 and 83 respectively.f The locking clip82 has a bottom leg $4 which has one end thereof mounted on acentral-portion of the bottom 22 and its other end is pivotallyconnected to one end of a brace leg 85 of the locking clip 32. Theopposite end of the brace leg 85 is secur'edtoa cross brace 86 on theleg 32. A hinge 37 is located in the bottom leg 84 of the locking clip82 adjacent to the bottom 22. When the handle 23,-.for examplev (FIG.5), is rotated in a counterclockwisedirection the'bottom leg 34 and thebrace leg85 are swung into their'extendedpositions and the locking cliptilprevents the wheelfiil from rotatingmore than 90 and secures saidwheel 30 in a position perpendicular to the bottom 22. When the lock'ingclip 82 is in its extended position,

which engage the front;24 at the front flanges 42 and 43 strength. I

Referring to FIG? means are provided for securing V :the sides 26 a'nd27 to the front flanges 42 and 43 respectively; Inthe'preferredembodiment pins 58 and 59 'pi'oportionsed and-.57 for additionab thehandle ZScannot beFrotatedlin a clockwise direction until pressure isapplied to the pivot point joiningthe bottom leg 84 and the brace legdswhereby the locking clip is released and the handle 28 can be returnedto the position'shown in PEG. 5. Likewise, the 'clip 83 consists trudefrom the forwardmost upper corner ofthe triangular i 3 to the foldedposition of FIG. 4. Likewise asuitable catch 62 is mounted on thestiffener wall- 38 to retain the front 24 inthe closed position. I 1?longitudinally "extending handles 28 and 29 extend through suitableapertures in the-stiffener wall 38. 'for rotation therein, and a forwardportion of each handle 28 an'd'29 between "the wheelsf3tl and 31 and the-legs .32 and 33 respectively is pivotally secured to the bottom 22 byhinge knuckles'dyshownin'FIG. 6. i l

The upperor rear portion 64"of eachhandle 28 and 29-.is curveddownwardlypto facilitate rotation of the Stub axles 68 and 69 aremounted on bracketsfit) and 71 respectively at the forward ends of thehandles 28 and 29 respectively adjacentthe stops 46. Each ofthe'brackets 70 and- 71!. comprises a pair'of flanges 72 and 73connected by a web '74, and the end portion of one .ofthe handles 28 or29 extends through apertures in the flanges .72 and '73 whileia pin '75extends through both the'handle and-the 'web/Z l-to insure rotation ofthelbrac ket 70 or 71 p A plate, '76extends1upward from. the

"outsid'eedges ofthe flanges 'iz and sides 26 and 27 respectively,andthe'se pins are received :in suitable apertures'fodin the frontflanges 42 and 4 3... A suit ableclarnp 61 shown in FIGS. 4 and7 isutilized'in a conjunction withthe' pins 5% and Sh te restrain the sides1 '26 and 2'7 from moving from the erected position of FIG.

of ,abottom leg 83, one end of which is mounted on the bottomflfi andthe oppositeend of which 'ispivotally secured to one end of a bracerages. The other end of the brace leg 89 is mounted o'na cross brace9illon the leg 33. A hinge 91 is located in the bottomleg 88 adjacentto' the bottom 22. Thelocking clip 83 operates in a similarv manner. tothe above described operation or" the locking clip 82 v y I In operationthe parts of the cart 20am in the positions indicated in FIGS. '1 and 2,and when the-parts are so opened or erected thecart may readilybe usedto handle loose material such as dirt, fertilizer, peat, etc. When it isdesired toltransportcontained material, suchgas bagged fertilizer orlarge cans of material-that'would not nor-' mally'fit in the cart 20;thejsides 26 and 27 are moved to the folded position shown in FIG. 4-while the; front 24 is 'left'in the ,open position. .f-If itbecomesdesirable to move the cart sideways such as along a row or atthe-edge of a lawn, the handle's 2{8 andf29 are rotated through ninetydegreesinthe direction of the arrows A and? re.- spectively as shown inFIG. 4 upon'r'ele'a'se of the clips 82 and 83 untilthe wheels 3'0 and 31reach the position shown in FIG. 3. The wheels are also in this rotatedposition in FIG-5. This enablesthe ,cart 2%) to'be moved in a sidewaysdirection atTight-"angles to "the extent of the handles Ziiand 29.

' When it is desired to, store the cart, the sides 26 and 27 are first'moved to the folded position of FIG'. 4 by releasing the clamping means61. Thereupon the front 2 a 24 is moved in the. direction of the 'arrowC in FIG. 4

to the position shown in FIG. 5 and the handles are turned in. themanner previouslyde'scribed to the positlon indicated in FIG. 5; v Y

While the preferredembodimentoftthe invention has been shown, variousmodifications canbe made without .departing from the spirit of.theinventionior the. scope of the" appended claims." f

I claim:

1. In a loose material carrying cart of the type comprising a bottom anda front and an open position for carrying said loose material and aclosed position for storage; the improvement comprising outwardlydirected, fixably secured, flanges on said bottom, an outwardly directedlip on said bottom extending between said outwardly directed flanges,mating flanges fixably secured on said front directed toward saidbottom, a mating lip on said front extending between said mating flangesand directed toward said bottom, and means for pivotally connecting saidmating flanges to said outwardly directed flanges for swinging movementabout an axis adjacent to but spaced from both said lips whereby saidlips move from substantial juxtaposition in said open position forcontaining said loose material to a spaced apart position in said closedposition forming a slot therebetween for the passage of materialresidue. r

2. A folding lawn cart comprising a rigid bottom, upwardly directedflanges on opposite edges of said bottom, a rigid front at an edge ofsaid bottom extending between said flanges, mating flanges onsaid frontdirected toward said bottom, said flanges and said mating flanges lyingin juxtaposed parallel planes and having overlapping end portions, meansfor pivotally attaching end portions of said mating flanges to endportions of said outwardly directed flanges for swinging movement ofsaid front relative to said bottom from an open position fortransportwardly directed flanges for swinging movement from an erectedposition between said outwardly directed and mating flanges to a foldedposition wherein said sides are in planes generally parallel to saidbottom, longitudinally extending handles positioned adjacent said bottomon the opposite side thereof from said outwardly extending flanges, anda ground engaging wheel rotatably mounted on each handle, said handlesbeing pivotally secured to said bottom for movement from a firstposition wherein said wheels are in planes substantially normal to saidbottom for ground engagement to a second position wherein said wheelsare in a plane generally parallel to said bottom for sideways movementof said cart.

3. A folding lawn cart comprising a rigid bottom, a pair of outwardlydirected flanges extending along opposite sides of said bottom, astiffener wall extending along an edge of said bottom between saidoutwardly directed flanges, a rigid front positioned at an edge of saidbottom opposite said stiffener wall, a pair of mating flanges'onopposite sides of said front and directed toward said bottom, means forpivotally attaching said mating flanges to end portions of saidoutwardly directed flanges opposite said stiffener wall for swingingmovement of said front relative to said bottom from an open position toa closed position wherein said front lies in a plane substantiallyparallel to said bottom, said mating flanges having a spacingtherebetween slightly larger than spacing between said outwardlydirected flangeswhereby saidmating flanges overlie said outwardlydirected flanges in substantial juxtaposition in said closed position, apair of spaced sides extending between said bottom and said front insaid open position, means for hingedly connecting said sides to saidbottom for swinging movement from an erected position to a foldedposition wherein said sides lie between said outwardly directed flanges,handles positioned adjacent said bottom on the opposite side thereoffrom said outwardly extending flanges, a ground engaging wheel rotatablymounted on the end of each handle, said handles extending throughapertures in said stiffener Wall and having portions adjacent saidWheels pivotally secured to said bottom adjacent said front for movementfrom a first position wherein said wheels are in planes substantiallynormal to said bottom for ground engagement to a second position whereinsaid wheels are in a plane generally parallel to said bottom forsideways movement of said cart, and means for relatively locking saidhandles in said first position.

4. A folding lawn cart comprising a rigid bottom, a pair of flangesextending along opposite sides of said bottom and normal thereto forimparting rigidity to said bottom, a stiffener member extending along anedge of said bottom between said flanges, a rigid front positioned at anedge of said bottom opposite said stiffener member, means for pivotallyattaching said front to said flanges for swinging movement of said frontrelative to said bottom from an open position to a closed positionwherein said front lies in a plane substantially parallel to saidbottom, a pair of spaced sides extending between said flanges and saidfront. in said open position, means for mounting said sides for swingingmovement from an erected position between said bottom and said front toa folded position wherein said sides lie in planes generally parallel tosaid bottom whereby said front can be left in an open position; a pairof spaced handles positioned below said bottom adjacent said flanges, aground engaging Wheel rotatably mounted on an end of each handle, saidwheel being located substantially at the center of said cart, and aground engaging leg portion extending downwardly from each of saidhandles in a plane parallel to the plane of its respective wheel, saidhandles extending through apertures in said stiffener member and havingportions between saidwheels and said legs pivotally secured to saidbottom adjacent said front for movement from a first position whereinsaid wheels and legs lie in planes substantially normal to said bottomfor ground engagement to a second position wherein said wheels and saidlegs lie in planes generally parallel to said bottom.

5. A folding lawn cart comprising a rigid bottom, an outwardly directedlip extending along an edge of said bottom, a rigid front positionedadjacent said lip, means for mounting said front for swinging movementrelative to said bottom from on open position for transporting loosematerial to a closed position for storage wherein said front lies in aplane substantially parallel to said bottom, a mating lip extendingalong an edge of said front in overlyingrelationship and in engagementwith said outwardly directed lip in said open position, said mating lipbeing spaced from said first lip in said closed position to provide aslot in the lowermost portion of said body for passage of residue ofsaid loose material, a pair of spaced sides extending between saidbottom and said a front in said open position, groundengaging wheelsroto said bottom for sideways movement of said cart. 7

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,680,027 De Puydt et a1 June 1', 1954 2,767,996, Seyforth Oct. 23, 19562,891,802 Moran June 23, 1959

1. IN A LOOSE MATERIAL CARRYING CART OF THE TYPE COMPRISING A BOTTOM ANDA FRONT AND AN OPEN POSITION FOR CARRYING SAID LOOSE MATERIAL AND ACLOSED POSITION FOR STORAGE; THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING OUTWARDLYDIRECTED, FIXABLY SECURED, FLANGES ON SAID BOTTOM, AN OUTWARDLY DIRECTEDLIP ON SAID BOTTOM EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID OUTWARDLY DIRECTED FLANGES,MATING FLANGES FIXABLY SECURED ON SAID FRONT DIRECTED TOWARD SAIDBOTTOM, A MATING LIP ON SAID FRONT EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID MATING FLANGESAND DIRECTED TOWARD SAID BOTTOM, AND MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY CONNECTING SAIDMATING FLANGES TO SAID OUTWARDLY DIRECTED FLANGES FOR SWINGING MOVEMENTABOUT AN AXIS ADJACENT TO BUT SPACED FROM BOTH SAID LIPS WHREBY SAIDLIPS MOVE FROM SUBSTANTIAL JUXTAPOSITION IN SAID OPEN POSITION FORCONTAINING SAID LOOSE MATERIAL TO A SPACED APART POSITION IN SAID CLOSEDPOSITION FORMING A SLOT THEREBETWEEN FOR THE PASSAGE OF MATERIALRESIDUE.